How to Choose the Best VPN for Thailand

If you’ve seen any of those review sites that list top 5 VPN’s for Thailand or similar, don’t bother.

These sites are just recommending their preferred VPNs in general. The reviews aren’t Thailand specific and they recommend pretty much the same services for each country.

Trust me, I work online and I’ve used 6 VPN services since moving to Thailand, so I know what works well here inside the Land of Smiles.

Not all VPN’s are created equally, either: There are 4 key things you need to consider:

How many countries the company has servers in: This determines how many countries you can pretend to be connected in. So, while you might be staying in Thailand, you can pretend to be in Italy, for example.

How fast the connection is: Some VPN’s take ages to boot up once you click on the software that you have to load once connected to the web. The better services take less than 20 seconds on average.

How the VPN performs inside the country you are based in: Some just didn't work well for me in Thailand. One free service was in fact blocked by True internet.

How secure your information is: Some VPN services store your browsing history and location details for lengthy periods of time, and some even share this data with government authorities. I won't use a VPN company that stores anything for more than 30 days (locally), and certainly not one that shares my information with third parties.

Here's a breakdown of the 2 VPN services that I currently use, and will work brilliantly for you while staying in Thailand:

Based out of Switzerland, VyprVPN has moved into my #1 recommendation spot in the past year because the service is just superb.

It boasts 700 servers and handles data end-to-end with no third party involved. This means the highest level of privacy and security are guaranteed.

Everyone in the game knows that Switzerland is notorious for being privacy conscious.

Coverage & Ease of Use:

Vypr has solid coverage in Asia, with servers in Thailand, Singapore and Australia. The latter two I use regularly, as the speeds are very good.

Here's a screenshot of VyprVPN on my desktop/laptop:

Now I'm in New York (hehe). You see the kill switch? It automatically stops all traffic if Vypr becomes disconnected. And switching on the site blocker helps you avoid malicious sites. Easy to use, self-explanatory, and very secure.

VyprVPN can be used across all your devices, and simultaneously too. Here's some screenshots of the VyprVPN app on my iPhone (they cater for Android devices, too):

Pricing:

VyprVPN used to be a tad more expensive than other VPN providers because they maintain all their own software and hardware, but recently that changed and, because of such high user numbers, they have brought out two new irresistible pricing plans.

If you pay for a year up front you get it far cheaper and, if you break the price down annually, I'm sure you'll agree that it's peanuts for such great cyber security.

If you don't like it, you don't have to keep it. Your card is not charged until the trial ends.

You still get the extra security features too. These may or may not mean much to you, but let me run through them quickly:

Basically, Vypr's OpenVPN gives you the option of choosing from 3 levels of encryption, and the Chameleon technology you get on the premium plan uses scrambled metadata to prevent VPN blocking, something that some VPN users are coming across more frequently these days in Thailand, China and other countries.

To date, authorities have been unable to block Vypr in Thailand under any circumstance — it even gets past the great China firewall, if you decide to visit there.

The cloud feature on premium gives you your own dedicated server and IP address, which makes the service even faster.

If you want to go for Vypr, I've reduced the slight difference in price for you even more by reaching out to the owners and securing a special discount for my readers (click the pricing table below to get that special deal).

If you’re serious about protecting your privacy from the authorities and want a steel wall to hide behind, Vypr is the bulletproof option.

Based in the UK, the Hidemyass network just keeps growing and growing. It's reliable and super easy for non-techies to use, but because of this lacks that cool kill switch and auto-malicious sites blocker that Vypr boasts.

Some don't like the idea that HMA is based in the UK because they assume HMA passes logs to the UK government, but despite the rumors this isn't true.

They keep username, timestamp, and IP for 60-90 days and then delete it. They DO NOT store details of, or monitor, the resources (including websites) you connect to or any of the data sent or received over the network when using the VPN service.

Coverage & Ease of Use:

HMA has got 865 servers in 193 countries around the world, and recently added a ton of USA servers and more in France and Australia – bringing the total number of IP address to 116,000+.

There's also a server in Thailand and every other country in the region, so you can pretend to be in Thailand even when you aren't here. Here's a screenshot of my desktop HMA dashboard:

It’s super-fast and can be used across multiple devices, so you can install it on your mobile and tablet devices, and that of your partner’s too.

To use Hidemyass, you simply load the software on your computer, or the app on your phone or tablet, select the country you want to hide in and press connect.

Here's some screenshots of the HMA app on my iPhone (they cater for Android too):

Pricing:

Price wise, HMA is coming in a little more expensive than Vypr these days. The extra is for the infrastructure: they have 940+ VPN servers, located in 340+ locations, across 190+ countries, with a total of 120000+ IP addresses. That's a lot of ways to stay anonymous!

Recommendations in Summary

Both companies are based in Europe: HMA in the UK and VyprVPN in Switzerland. This means they don't have to pass user data activity to the authorities like US-based VPN companies do. This fully protects your privacy.

Both are military grade encrypted. You cannot be recognized, anywhere!

Both work very well in Thailand, due to the volume of available servers scattered around the world.

VPN in a Nutshell

A VPN is essential for avoiding hackers, and for browsing and downloading files anonymously. If you often access your bank accounts online while abroad, it will also provide an additional layer of security against the bad guys.

A VPN lets you conceal your personal information and your location (IP address) online from snooping by your internet service provider. This means they can't pass your information to local and foreign authorities.

Furthermore, you can also watch and read restricted content without it being blocked by the Thai authorities. Additionally, you can bypass territorial restrictions on Netflix, Amazon, BBC iPlayer, etc., and stream movies and series from wherever you are.

Why You Need A VPN Now

That's because you're being watched. And that's why you need a VPN for Thailand.

Everything you do online in Thailand is tracked and logged.

In 2015 the following statements began to appear in the media.

Thailand’s prime minister has defended plans to introduce tough new cyber laws, which would give authorities the right to access emails, telephone records, computer data and even postal mail without court approval. ~ AFP News

Seven major Thai online service providers are working with the Thai government to create new guidelines for tackling the spread of illegal content on the web. The group are regulating content related to pornography, terrorism, drugs, spam, phishing and copyright infringement. ~ Bangkok Post

Privacy International has conducted previous investigations into the Thai government’s surveillance of social media as a tool of intimidation. This report demonstrates how the practice is not only expanding, but the government is also experimenting with other forms of surveillance. Privacy International is concerned about the increasing monitoring of social media and other internet-based communications services.

The PI report uncovered the use of fairly low-grade tech. The nature of these methods means you can safely say that a VPN like this will keep your privacy safe.

Old Vs. New Thailand

Thailand has cracked down on dissidents in recent years. You only have to check the news reports to see evidence of this.

But it's not just about those criticizing the country and its politics, Thailand is also getting tougher on spammers, lawbreakers and of all things, copyright infringers.

I know. Thailand is the last place on earth you’d expect to get in trouble for copyright infringement, particularly when this has always been the one place people come to get their yearly supply of fake handbags, bootleg DVDs and Polo shirts.

But Thailand has had to step up its game in this regard.

It had become a safe haven for internet spammers, web fraudsters, hackers, those selling prescription drugs online, everyday torrent users and basically anyone doing any kind of online activity considered illegal in the western world.

But under pressure from the international community, Thailand is getting tougher with its online security. It wants to ensure that it is in favour when it comes to trade agreements and diplomacy with Europe and America.

To fall in with the big boys, Thailand is expected to start regulating online copyright infringement, and help the NSA gather information by invading the privacy of its citizens and guests by investigating their online activity and reporting back to big brother.

The aptly named “snooping initiative” began in 2013.

The Electronic Transactions Development Agency (ETDA) began working with the PKI Association, the TISA (Thailand Information Security Association), THE Internet Foundation for the Development of Thailand, THE Thailand ISP Association, the Thai e-Commerce Association, Google Asia Pacific (yes, you know it's serious when Google is involved) and eBay to create the country's first self-enforced code of conduct for preventing illegal content on the web.

The US National Security Agency uses computer servers in Thailand to help run a massive collection of information about internet users, and to store and analyse the data”.

A Very Real Risk to Your Privacy

Well, as you know, Thailand doesn’t mess around when it comes to enforcing the law, particularly where foreign nationals are concerned. Get caught doing something illegal and end up in prison. Simple.

But just how serious will this crackdown on online activity get?

I mean, we’ve heard the word “crackdown” bounded around in Thailand so many times over so many issues that it doesn’t really hold much weight in our minds anymore. And what does “preventing online illegal content on the web mean?”

Well, remember the spate of ridiculous court cases brought by the RIAA in the US?

Remember 12 year old Brianna LaHara who was fined $2,000, or Wisconsin grandfather Fred Lawrence who ended up smacked with a $60,000 lawsuit, or how about 66-year-old grandmother of three, Lola Scruse, who, in 2006, was fined $6,000 because her grandchildren downloaded songs onto her computer – she was on dialysis and lived off of Social Security checks at the time.

None of us know just how serious online security will become in Thailand, but the last thing you want is the police to come to your apartment or hotel with a piece of paper from the Electronic Transactions Development Agency (ETDA) that says you need to pay a fine or go to jail.

I can see it now, expats and travellers paraded on Thai TV by police officials as online pirates attempting to use Thai web space illegally.

Far fetched? It really isn’t.

Thailand is adopting the policies of the western world, and what might seem like a harmless download of a movie may end up costing you time in a cell.

Mind What You Say: This isn't Just About Illegal Content

It will be the guy that downloads a few movies, or visits a couple of sites deemed “unsuitable” that gets made an example of .

It will the buy who responds to a comment on a forum criticizing the government.

Oh, and that Thai guy that sells all those fake DVDs at your local market, yes, he'll still be there while you're negotiating your fine.

It's not just about illegal content though. It's about dissent.

The authorities want to get past the political problems of the past few years, and part of that means making sure people don't share negative media or write negatively about Thailand on social networking platforms and forums.

This means that dissidents and their friends are being monitored; so be careful who you're friends with on Twitter and Facebook, and what you watch, share and download.

It might sound a bit like I'm fear-mongering here, but this is the reality. And not just in Thailand but the world over. Instability and insecurity is making the powers that be very paranoid, and as such they need to see what we bad citizens are up to at all times.

Even if it sounds over the top, it doesn't hurt to protect yourself. You have a right to privacy, too.